Traditional models for functional decomposition of algorithms are vague in their definition of lower decomposition levels. In the Yourdon structured model, control transformations decompose into state transition diagrams which represent the real-time aspects of the system. Although control transformations were used by Yourdon, Ward and Millor, and Batley and Pirbhai to define real-time control transformation events, their definition of control transformation does not include any of the following types of software statements: goto, if-then-else, switch loops, and subroutine calls.
If the transformations decompose from the highest to the lower levels, but the complexity is not constrained by the developer as the functionality decomposes, as in the McCabe model, the amount of control is unconstrained, and it is not clear when the decomposition should end. Furthermore, since the unconstrained decomposition does not inherently simplify the design, it does not actually meet the criteria of mathematical functional decomposition.
To eliminate the above-noted shortcomings of previous decomposition methods, a simple graph, created in accordance with the multiprocessor functional decomposition (MPfd) model described herein, is constrained to a single control structure per decomposition level and exposes all transitions, preparing the graph for translation into a finite state machine (FSM).
Traditionally, FSMs have been used to create compilers and have also been used in sequential circuit design. Being able to use FSMs in general software design and thus in general programming offers huge benefits for general programming including increased software clarity and the ability better combine computer software with computer hardware.
Management of projects, as done in most software development companies today, is divorced from the software design process. The most common project management tools are the Gantt and PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) charts. Microsoft Corporation has shown that a Gantt chart can be converted into a PERT chart and vice versa. These charts typically show tasks, time durations for each task, task dependencies, and starting dates for each task. The various tasks and their associated attributes are currently manually entered and manually maintained because current project management tools are general tools which are separate from software design.